It is well known to encapsulate integrated circuit (IC) devices in packages in order to protect the device and to provide connective leads for coupling terminals of the IC device to, for example, a printed circuit (PC) board.
The packaged IC devices commonly include a support surface, a singulated die attached to the support surface with a die adhesive, conductive leads attached to the die, and an encapsulant surrounding at least the die and portions of the conductive leads. The encapsulant functions to prevent ingress of moisture, secure leads to the die, and assist in securing the die to the substrate. In certain devices, it is known to provide mold locks on a surface of the substrate. The mold locks are intended to aid in securing encapsulant to the substrate.
Known mold locks can be in the form of a dimple on a surface of a substrate and also as a “v”-shaped groove or notch formed into the surface of the substrate. The dimple can be formed by, for example, etching or deposition as known in the art. Similarly, the v-shaped groove can be formed by etching, cutting, or otherwise notching a surface of the substrate. An encapsulant surrounds the dimple or fills the v-shaped groove.